Fountain mop



March 4,1924. 1,485,891

J. B. SIBLEY ET AL FOUNTAIN MOP Filed Jam-2'7; 1922 TIQA- T NvEm ul s 8.

Patented Mar. 4, i924.

siren stares- JOHN B. SIBLEY, OF LITTLETON, AND HERBERT C. JENKINS, 0F BOSTON, MASSA- CHUSETTS.

FOUNTAIN MOP.

Application filed January 27, 1922.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, JOHN B. SIBLEY and HERBERT C. JENKINS, citizens of the United States, residing at Iiittleton, county of Middlesex, State of *vlassachusetts, and at Boston, county of Suffolk, State of Massachusetts, respectively, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Fountain Mops, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to dust mops or floor polishers of the type in which means are provided for supplying oil or other liquid dressing to the fabric of the mop.

The invention has for its object to provide a simple and compact structure for devices of this character, and more especially to provide improved means for feeding the oil or other liquid dressing to the mop fibers, said means being of such a character that the supply of oil will be reliably controlled and the amount thereof can be conveniently and accurately regulated.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention, together with means whereby the same may be carried into effect, will best be understood from the following description of one form or embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It will be understood, however, that the particular construction described and shown has been chosen for illustrative purposes merely, and that the invention, as defined by the claims hereunto appended, may be otherwise practiced without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.

In said drawings:

Fig. 1 is a substantially central vertical section through the mop head.

Fig. 2 is a plan view, partly in horizontal section.

Fig. 3 is a detail elevation, looking from the left in Figures 1 and 2, of the oil feeding and controlling device.

Fig. 4 is a detail horizontal section taken substantially on the line 4, 4, Figure 3.

In accordance with the invention, the mop fabric 10 is secured in place about the periphery of a hollow head 11, constituting the reservoir for the oil or other liquid dressing, said reservoir having a suitable filling opening 12 closed by a screw or other cap 18, and being provided with ears 14 between which is pivoted the usual handle Serial No. 532,201.

15. In the construction shown, the hollow head, which is substantially triangular in plan with one of its angles forwardly disposed, is formed with upper and lower laterally projecting flanges 16 and 17 forming between them an external peripheral channel or groove .18, in which the mop fabric is secured. Said fabric may be of any suitable or well known character, and may be secured in place by any suitable means, but as herein shown it comprisesa folded strip of textile material 10, thickly fringed at its edges to constitute the mop fibers 10. Said strip is of sufficient length to extend entirely about the head 11, and, as shown, has secured to one end a short strap of canvas or other suitable material 19 extending beyond said end and provided with a grommet 20 to receive a turn buttonv 21 carried by the other end of the strip- It will be seen that the construction above described provides an extremely simple and compact arrangement, the combined head and reservoir 11, which is relatively flat, being located substantially within the body of the mop fabric and not projecting to any considerable extent above the top thereof, so that the entire mop head is of flat form, thus enabling the same to be readily used in places where the vertical clearance is restricted, as in working beneath low articles of furniture.

Carried by the head or reservoir 11, preferably at the forward end or angle thereof, and extending from top to bottom of said reservoir, is a vertically disposed feeding tube 22 for the oil or other liquid dressing. Said tube is open at its lower end, and, preferably, also at its upper end, and is provided in its wall with two lateral openings or ports 5 and 6 communicating with the interior of the reservoir 11 adjacent the top and bottom respectively of the latter.

Rotatably mounted within the tube 22, and substantially fitting the interior thereof, is a rotary valve member or plug 25, preferably formed at its upper end with an enlarged. head 26 constituting an operating member by which it may be manually turned and adjusted, said plug having also a laterally projecting stop and retaining pin 27 which is in threaded engagement with the plug and extends through an arcuate slot 28 in the wall of the tube 22 above the head 11.- The plug or valve member is formed with a longitudinal groove 29 extending from the slot 28 to the lower end of said plug, which groove, in one angular position of the valve, is in communication with the ports 5 and 6 of the tube 22. The plug 25 is preferably fitted to the tube 22 with sufficient tightness to cause the same to be held by friction in any angular position into which it may be set. It will be seen that with said plug in the position shown in Figure 1, oil from the reservoir 11. will be admitted through the port 6 to the groove 29, and will be discharged from the lower end of the latter directly upon the mop fibers 10 to which said end is in proximity. At the same time, the upper portion of the reservoir will be vented to the atmosphere through the port groove 29, and slot 28, the latter performing the double function of a vent opening and a stop for the pin 27. The plug 25 may be turned by means of the knob 26 to adjust the amount of liquid dressing thus discharged, so that tiic feeding of said dressing can be controlled with considerable nicety, insuring the supply of exactly the quantity required and preventing flooding of the mopj The knob 26 and pin 27 are housed and protected against accidental displacement from the intended adjustment by an upstanding, arcuate and inwardly curved flange or guard 30 formed on the top of the head 11. The flange 30 ma if desired, be provided with one or more index marks 31 cooperating with the pin 27 to indicate the position of adjustment of the valve. As shown in Figure 2, one such mark is provided to indicate the central position of the pin 27, in which position the feeding device is open to feed the maximum amount of oil. The valve is turned in one direction or another from this position to decrease the amount of oil fed, and is moved into one extreme position or the other, as determined by the length of the slot 28 and the engagement of the pin 27 with the ends thereof, in order to shut off the supply of oil, this being, of course, done when the mop is not in use.

It will be seen that, by removing the pin 2 the valve plug 25 may be readily Withdrawn from the upper end of the tube 22 for purposes of cleaning or otherwise.

W hat we claim is:

l. A fountain mop comprising a reservoir, mop material carried by said reservoir, a substantially vertical supply tube extending therethrough from top to bottom, and having a discharge opening at its lower end, said tube having a vent port and a discharge port communicating with the interior of said reservoir adjacent the top and bottom thereof, respectively, and'hav ing also an arcuate slot above said reservoir, and a rotary plug valve within said tube said valve having means for placing said vent port in communication with said slot and said discharge port in communication with said discharge opening and a pin secured to said valve and guided in said slot for limiting the rotary movement of said valve.

2. A fountain mop comprising a fiat hollow head constituting a reservoir, mop fabric secured in place about the periphery of said head, a substantially vertical supply tube extending through said reservoir from top to bottom and having an open lower end adapted to discharge liquid upon said fabric, said tube having a vent port and a discharge port communicating with the interior of said reservoir adjacent the top and bottom thereof, respectively, and having also a slot providing a vent opening above said reservoir, and a rotary plug valve in said tube and having operating means at the upper end thereof, said valve having a longitudinal groove extendin from said vent opening to the lower en of said tube and adapted in one angular position of said valve to register with both of said ports and a pin secured to said valve and guided insaid slot for limiting the rotary movement of said valve.

in testimony whereof we afiiz; our signatures.

JOHN B. SIBLEY. HERBERT C. JENKINS. 

